The poem “Persimmons” written by Li-Young Lee, grasps the concept of a young foreign boy, and his difficulty integrating into a distant society. The persimmon is a very prominent symbol in the poem; it is a very treasured fruit in China and in this piece it is used to represent the ethnic divide between Americans and Chinese people. The young boy shows signs of frustration in regards to the teacher’s ignorance about the persimmon and how the teacher does not appreciate it the same way he does. The boy is very experienced with the fruit, from determining the ripeness, how to prepare it, and how to handle it specifically. Dissimilar from those in the new society, the boy has established a connection with the persimmon from his cultural heritage …show more content…
and the persimmon is used as a centerpiece throughout the poem to demonstrate the strength of the relationship between the boy’s ethnicity and the fruit. In the first stanza of the poem, the teacher slapped the boy in the back of his head “for not knowing the difference between persimmon and precision”(line 4-5). Seeing as the young boy is of Chinese descent, his first language is not English; therefore he struggles to distinguish the difference between “precision and persimmon”. Not only do the two words sound similar, but also naturally the young boy makes a connection that choosing a persimmon requires precision, and Mrs. Walker penalizes him for getting them confused. The confusion of these two words are noteworthy, they symbolize the frustration and complication of integration into a foreign society. The young boy is very attached to this fruit, there is ethnic value to the persimmon in various ways: how it is prepared, if it has been ripened properly, and the specific way that it is eaten. A clear example of this is when the boy says “how to choose persimmons. This is precision” (6-7). He then follows to describe the appropriate way to eat the fruit, “how to eat: put the knife away, peel the skin tenderly, not to tear the meat” (10-11). A powerful concept in this line is when he specifically says, “put the knife away”. The knife slicing the persimmon precisely in pieces symbolizes the ethnic division from the Chinese boy to the American culture. The persimmon alone as a whole is strongly correlated to the Chinese culture and when it is not prepared the correct way, or sliced in half it demonstrates a distant society with a different ethnic background. The boy’s parents play a large role in solidifying their ethnicity and the level of significance a persimmon is to them.
The mother has a very strong relationship with the persimmon; it is more than just a fruit but she has a spiritual and sentimental attachment to it “every persimmon has a sun inside, something golden, glowing, warm as my face” (47-48). The mother’s perspective of each persimmon is similar to how she would see a human, unique, warm, and they all manifest their own ethnic culture and something golden within. In addition to the mother’s connection with the fruit, the boy has an elderly father that is blind who expresses his love for the fruit through his paintings. His father can imagine the beauty of a persimmon without having one near; he “painted them hundreds of times eyes closed” (83-84). Evidently, the father has a deep connection with the fruit, for example, “some things never leave a person, scent of the hair of one you love, the texture of persimmons,” (87). He was so attached and captivated by the fruit that he had the ability to paint pictures unescorted by the fruit. This catalyzes a deeper meaning, that your ethnicity will always be along-side you and no matter what circumstance you will be able to envision the true
you. Throughout the poem Mrs. Walker is responsible for displaying the most apparent aspect of ethnic division. Although some of her actions may not intentionally represent her willingness for cultural divide, her behavior conducts frustration in the foreign boy. Because of Mrs. Walker’s lack of connection with the persimmon she is unaware how to choose, prepare, and eat it properly. To demonstrate, when “Mrs. Walker brought a persimmon to class and cut it up so everyone could taste a Chinese apple” (41-43) the boy was discontent with her choice; “knowing it wasn’t ripe or sweet, I didn’t eat it but watched the other faces”(41-43). In addition, the teacher “cut it up” when the formal way to prepare the fruit is to be peeled. This example illustrates Mrs. Walker’s ignorance, and insufficient effort to understand the boy’s ethnicity. Mrs. Walker undoubtedly knew he had an ethnic connection to the “Chinese apple” (43) yet she did not give the boy a chance to express the importance of a persimmon and how symbolic the persimmon is to the Chinese heritage nor was he given an opportunity to introduce the fruit to his class, or prepare it for others to enjoy. The persimmon throughout the poem is used as a very strong symbol of ethnicity, rather than a simple fruit that the American culture views it as. In various examples the persimmon represents a strong connection to Chinese ethnicity, such as the mother suggesting that “every persimmon has a sun inside” (47) and the father insinuating that the texture of a persimmon will never be forgotten, and they can be painted solely based on visualization. The ethnic division between the American and Chinese cultures is also shown in the classroom, when Mrs. Walker brings in a persimmon to share with the class. Her lack of knowledge and effort to engage in the history of the fruit is prominent in recognizing the difference between the Chinese boy and the American culture. Ethnicity is a very important aspect of this poem; it gives reason to display the language barrier and relationship to the fruit. The young boys knowledge on how to enjoy the fruit declares the ethnic alliance and importance that is shown throughout “Persimmons”.
The tree “swings through another year of sun and leaping winds, of leaves and bounding fruit.” This sentence evokes images of happiness and serenity; however, it is in stark contrast with “month after month, the whip-crack of the mortgage.” The tone of this phrase is harsh and the onomatopoeia of a “whip crack” stirs up images of oppression. The final lines of the poem show the consequences that the family accepts by preserving the tree—their family heritage. When the speaker judges the tree by its cover she sees monetary value, but when she looks at the content in the book she find that it represents family. Even though times may be tough for the family, they are united by memories of their ancestors.
Throughout the article, the author uses the first person view to illustrate her main idea. For example, in the first paragraph she says “I learned that despite our differences in size, shape and color, we humans are 99.9 percent the same”. Here she uses the first person point of view to show her belief that people are different on the outside but inside they all are human, which is an example of expressive purpose. She says “I never noticed that my parents were different colors” and “I knew them as my parents before I saw them as people – before I perceived their skin color”. In this two quotes, the author expresses her feeling that although her parents are different in their skin colors she had never been racist or noticed that. The author sees her mother and father as her parents, their skin colors do not make them different to her. It is another characteristic of expressive
Although the author’s words are simple, they create a mood into the illustrations that truly emphasise the emotion of the indigenous point of view. Viewers can than feel more of what they can see, an example of this is when the authors used different sized text in “stole our children.” This text with the illustration can truly create an effect on the way it is read and viewed by, making viewers feel empathy as the size of each words shrinks defining the children’s positon as they get further away from their parent. This attains the Europeans guilt on the choices they had made as the story is seen in the indigenous point of view on how they suffered due to the past horrendous choices made by the Europeans at that
Listening is an important skill that many people take for granted. Listening empathelicay means putting oneself in “someone else’s shoes”. Listening only to get information takes away much of what the speaker is saying, by being able to empathize with someone one is on the same wavelength. In this world, there exist many different cultures and subcultures. In Graciela Limon’s novel, Song of the Hummingbird, Huitzitzilin tells her story as Father Benito listens. She tells Father Benito the native view of what has happened- she tells him things that he has never heard of from his people. Huitzitzilin and Father Benito are products of two different cultures: Aztecs and Spaniards, respectively. Limon portrayed that the Spaniards didn’t even try to understand the Aztecs ways. Limon uses the literary elements of characterization, point of view, and internal conflict to show that in order to understand another culture, one must be able to treat his/her’s history with the same compassion and understanding as if it was their own's.
AGG) The author of “Under The Persimmon Tree” often uses symbolism throughout the book. (BS-1) The author of UTPT uses the stars to give Najmah a superstitious belief, and give her hope and guidance to drive her towards her goals. (BS-2) The stars are used to help Nusrat accept loss, she looks to them for hope and guidance, and they have a religious meaning to her. (BS-3) The author uses changes in the stars to convey events and changes in Najmah’s life. (TS) The stars are used to portray changes in the characters lives, and the author uses them to give the characters hope, guidance, and an important meaning, as well as the ability to deal with loss
The poem is written in the father’s point of view; this gives insight of the father’s character and
This darkly satirical poem is about cultural imperialism. Dawe uses an extended metaphor: the mother is America and the child represents a younger, developing nation, which is slowly being imbued with American value systems. The figure of a mother is synonymous with the United States. Even this most basic of human relationships has been perverted by the consumer culture. The poem begins with the seemingly positive statement of ‘She loves him’.
The family goes through struggles, such as their son having dyslexia, their daughter joining private school, and George trying to find his biological father. Many of the statements and visuals portrayed are those that negatively illustrate how Mexicans and Cubans act.... ... middle of paper ... ... Social Cognition (2008): 314-332. Browne. "
The Disney movies of Pocahontas tell a plot of a Native ¬American tribe and English colonists that fight for the land the Native Americans live on though war ultimately creating moderate peace. While keeping to their own sect, the imbalance of power between the two social groups is prevalent throughout much of the story. Walt Disney’s Pocahontas is more than a classic children’s movie. It is a thoughtful, well contrived narration that portrays a message that in order to fit in, you must be a certain race and born into a specific culture. Disney’s Pocahontas suggesting that the color of our skin shouldn’t matter when being accepted into social groups as well as the idea that arranged marriage should be rejected. Thus, treating people right could ultimately have a positive outcome and lastly, the film also suggests that family roles change without a mother figure.
Nonetheless, this really is a tale of compelling love between the boy and his father. The actions of the boy throughout the story indicate that he really does love his father and seems very torn between his mother expectations and his father’s light heartedness. Many adults and children know this family circumstance so well that one can easily see the characters’ identities without the author even giving the boy and his father a name. Even without other surrounding verification of their lives, the plot, characters, and narrative have meshed together quite well.
It describes how the conservative farmer follows traditions blindly and the isolated life followed by him. It reflects how people overcome physical barriers and that later in life come to their social life too. Where a neighbor with a pine tree, believes that this separation is needed as it is essential for their privacy and personal life. The poem explores a paradox in human nature. The first few lines reflect demolition of the wall,?Something there is that doesn?t reflect love a wall?
The poem begins "I, too, sing America. I am the darker brother." From those two lines alone, one can see that he is proud of who he is and introducing himself to the reader. In the line "I, too, sing America" he is explaining that he is an American like everyone else in the country, but he is only of a darker skin color as he follows up in line two with "I am the darker brother." He says that even though he is of another color he is still an American and he should not be treated any differently from any other American.
In a typical family, there are parents that expected to hear things when their teenager is rebelling against them: slamming the door, shouting at each other, and protests on what they could do or what they should not do. Their little baby is growing up, testing their wings of adulthood; they are not the small child that wanted their mommy to read a book to them or to kiss their hurts away and most probably, they are thinking that anything that their parents told them are certainly could not be right. The poem talks about a conflict between the author and her son when he was in his adolescence. In the first stanza, a misunderstanding about a math problem turns into a family argument that shows the classic rift between the generation of the parent and the teenager. Despite the misunderstandings between the parent and child, there is a loving bond between them. The imagery, contrasting tones, connotative diction, and symbolism in the poem reflect these two sides of the relationship.
In Claire Denis’ film, Chocolat, the relationship between the colonized and colonizers is focused to show each side’s point of view. This relationship is seen between Aimee, a young French mother, and Protee, a servant of Aimee’s family, who has set a boundary regarding the concept of race. The film is set in a limited, isolated area, the quarters where Aimee’s family and Protee resides, in order to utilize the surroundings to create a racial boundary and to focus on the character’s behavior and emotions. By creating a racial boundary, it limits one’s potential through status in power, empathy and ethnic exclusion. Chocolat is an emotional film with historical context that captures brilliant and effective scenes and reveals the powerful understatement
When two cultures meet, there is usually a disagreeable point. Either one tries to dominate the other, or both struggle for acceptance. This is shown by Eulalie’s behaviour in the presence of her in-laws and the reaction of Ato’s family upon knowing of his bride. Eulalie’s disgust at the ways and manners her fiancé’s family relate with her points out the theme of clashing cultures. Eulalie considers many of Ato’s family customs backwards and is disdainful of many of them. She also makes ignorant statements about the African women and culture. She states that all palm trees are the same, and she declares that knowing the difference does not really matter. The woman’s nonchalant act of smoking and excessive drinking displeases Ato’s family and even Ato himself. Ato’s family, on the other hand, displays the prejudice of thinking of African-Americans inferior because they are descendants of slaves. They think it is strange for Eulalie to have no tribe or surname, likening her to a “tree without roots.” When they hear that Eulalie is an African by descendant, the women in the house start weepi...